About Kilimanjaro

Mount Kilimanjaro, with its three volcanic cones, Kibo, Mawenzi and Shira, is a dormant volcanic mountain in Tanzania. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain in the world at 5,895 metres (19,341 ft) above sea level.

Kilimanjaro is a large stratovolcano and is composed of three distinct volcanic cones: Kibo, the highest; Mawenzi at 5,149 metres (16,893 ft); and Shira, the shortest at 4,005 metres (13,140 ft).Uhuru Peak is the highest summit on Kibo's crater rim. Tanzania National Parks, a governmental agency, and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization list the height of Uhuru Peak as 5,895 m (19,341 ft). That height is based on a British Ordnance Survey in 1952. Since then, the height has been measured as 5,892 metres (19,331 ft) in 1999, 5,891 metres (19,327 ft) in 2008, and 5,888 metres (19,318 ft) in 2014.

Mawenzi and Shira are extinct, while Kibo is dormant and could erupt again. The last major eruption has been dated to between 150,000 and 200,000 years ago. Kibo has gas-emitting fumaroles in its crater.

Shira is topped by a broad plateau, perhaps a filled caldera, and erosion has cut deeply into a remnant rim

Several collapses and landslides have occurred on Kibo before, one creating the area known as the Western Breach.